Talking with Ray from MusicGearFast

I had a chance to talk with Ray Arnoult, the owner/operator of MusicGearFast. MusicGearFast (MGF) is a online store that sells great guitar pedals and accessories. They also make some nice pedal demos and have a blog (News and Events) that I do follow personally myself.

I sent Ray a few questions via email to talk about what MusicGearFast is all about and he just recently sent his responses back. On top of that, he set up a EffectsBay exclusive promotion for the readers here! You can save 10% off on any order by entering the coupon code EFFECTSBAY. This offer is good until 10/31. Thanks much Ray!!!

If you’re a dealer of guitar pedals or a builder of guitar pedals and interested in a little interview, please contact me.

> What prompted you to start MusicGearFast?
We started MGF to fulfill the need for truly boutique guitar and bass items, but with a focus on customer service. Too many so called “high end” or “pro gear” shops out there are worried about image and finding the best players for the demo’s, but they are not worried about what truly counts – customer service.

> When did MusicGearFast.com become a reality?
We opened a little over a year ago with just a few items. We have been lucky and able increase the number of items we stock and steadily grow our loyal customer’s. Once you shop with MusicGearFast.com you won’t be disappointed!

> Does MusicGearFast.com have a physical store as well?
We are strictly online now, which really allows us to keep our overhead low and get better prices to the customer, but you never know – we might open a retail location some time in the future, but only if it will benefit customer service.

> What is the hottest ‘types’ of pedals these days? Delays? ODs? And why do you think that is?
The OD’s, Distortions and Fuzz’s are always popular, but where we are really seeing some interest in the rotary effects. There are some really big name players out there using the effect and that is probably a big influence – not to mention they sound really cool!

> Are there any builders that you’re super excited to be promoting?
We get excited about all the brands we sell, but some of the ones we really get excited about are the truly boutique brands like Lotus (some really awesome OD’s) and Plutoneium who is making a great new wah pedal called the Chi-Wah-Wah, we can’t keep them in stock right now.

> Are there any particular builders you feel often get overlooked?
The two I already mentioned, but any of the other builders that have been around a while. Rockett, Blackout Effectors, Catalinbread, WMD and others are starting to be considered old news, even though they have not been around that long. Take a listen to the Blackout Effectors Twosome Fuzz, that has to be one of the best pedals out there. Or check out the WMD Geiger Counter. If you are looking for a great old school bit crusher, the Geiger Counter is incredible.

> How often do you do pedal demos? (they sound great BTW)
We do demo’s whenever we can. Sometimes we get out one a week, other times it’s one a month. It really depends on how busy we are and how many orders we need to ship that day.

> The name of the biz is “Music Gear Fast”. Can you talk about how you ship your gear, etc?
We take a lot of pride in our Fast, Free shipping. Almost all of our in-stock orders ship the same day they are placed. A lot of places say they do that (and some of us have worked in places that make that claim), but they don’t. Their orders are processed once a week or every other day. MGF packs all orders the same day they come in and we ship them Priority Mail with tracking. That means most folks get their order in 2-3 days and they can see it every step of the way. Plus, we do all this standard – no extra fee’s or charges!

> Any new manufacturers planned to get included in the store?
We are working on a few new builders and on expanding the current line up of some of our existing ones. If you go to our News and Events page you can sign up for our newsletter and keep up to date on our new offerings.

> Do you have any killer deals going on right now?
Right now we are running an EffectsBay special. You can get 10% off any order by entering the coupon code EFFECTSBAY during checkout (through 10/31). Also, don’t forget about our Fast, Free Shipping.

> Do you ever offer give always or other types of promotion?
We love gear giveaways and promos and do them all the time. If you go to our News and Events page you can sign up for our newsletter and get updates on the latest giveaway or promo. We even do some special promo’s that only go out to folks that sign up for our newsletter.

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